Month: August 2015

I like to always have a plan and stick to it. I am not a last minute kind of person. But t his last week was particularly hard on my oldest. My work schedule, which is normally the same every week, was all over the place and he couldn’t handle not seeing me like normal. Every night was tears thinking of how he wouldn’t see me in the morning.

I can’t STAND to see my child so sad. I don’t know if it was just that he misses me, or if he has the same personality as mommy, who can’t stand when things don’t go as laid out.

So I knew I had to do SOMETHING special for him. So I booked a last minute beach trip. My kids LOVE the beach, and probably something that the oldest loves even more than that is getting to stay in a hotel.

So I as soon as I got off work, off we went! And he was UNBELIEVABLY HAPPY. It made my heart soar. When your child is hurting, you want to do anything you can to fix it. And for this once, I was able to do that for him.

He LOVED the hotel. I even took him in the pool, which if you knew me, is a HUGE thing as I have a major aversion to public pools. We went to the arcade, shopping, out to eat, and to the beach. Everything I knew he would love. And he enjoyed EVERY minute.

I don’t know what this next week will bring. I don’t know if he will be hurting again, or if he will be able to hold it together during my work week. I know that the problem isn’t solved, but I have done what I could to make it a little better for him by doing something he loves and spending quality time with him.

I will continue do my absolute BEST to help him get through the week and make him happy. Because again, my kids are THE MOST important thing. Protecting them and their hearts is something I will never stop doing.

No one wants to see their child hurting. Love your children, protect their hearts, and do all you can for them. Do something to make their day special. Spend some time with them, watch over them, and ENJOY them!

Did you know that with ONE product you can wash your face, condition your hair, and COOK, among other things?

We have been hearing for years now about all the wonderful uses for coconut oil. Just Google or Pinterest coconut oil and you will come up with a million different sites and uses.

If you have never used coconut oil before, it is a solid at cool temperatures, but will become a liquid at warmer temperatures, even in your hand.

You can wade through all of the uses at your leisure, but here are just my 5 favorites!

Face Wash/makeup remover– This has been my face wash for the last year or so. Using it is pretty simple. Spread it around your face let it sit on your face for a minute or two (I use this time to brush my teeth), moisten a wash rag with warm water and place over your face for approximately a minute (okay, I am lazy. This step takes me about 10-20 seconds, if that), then rub off the oil with the rag.

Hair conditioner– I am sure there are different ways you can do this. This is my process: Before bed, put hair in a high ponytail. Create a liquid with the oil (if it isn’t liquid already) by rubbing the oil in your hands. Smooth through ponytail. Then I cover the ponytail with a sock (I stole one of my husband’s old socks) and secure with a hair tie, because no one wants a pillow full of oil. In the morning, shower or wash and condition hair as usual. You may need to shampoo twice to get all the oil out. You should now have soft and shiny hair! I avoid the roots as I had a friend who applied it all over and she said her hair looked super greasy after. She may not have washed with shampoo twice either.

Shaving– Okay I know this sounds weird. But since I already use this for a face wash, it is readily available in my bathroom, AND I was out of shave gel, I thought, why not try it? Spread it on my legs, shaved, and what do you know? Probably the best shave I have had in quite awhile and no razor burn!

Get stains off hands– My husband works on different equipment and will often come in the house with grease stained hands. I had read years ago about using oil to help clean greasy hands (which, I know, sounds counterproductive), and it works! Works much better than trying to get grease off with just normal soap. No coconut oil on hand? You can also use olive oil, vegetable oil, baby oil, whatever oil you have should work!

Cooking– Replacing your normal cooking oils with coconut oil can have many health benefits. Check out Lisa’s 100 Days Of Real Food for some great tips!

There are SO MANY MORE uses than I have listed here but these are my favorites to get you started!

If you have an allergy to coconut, I would not use coconut oil. Also, if it is your first time using, test on a small area of skin. My mother tried to use it as a moisturizer on her legs (yes it works for this too!) and she broke out in a rash. So, fair warning, testing is good.

If you are looking for more information, including peer reviewed research articles, Coconutoil.com has a lot of information and links to articles. Happy oiling!

They love and trust you unconditionally. They put their faith in you, never doubting for a second that you will always be there for them. That you will protect them, love them, and meet their needs.

As a parent, we have to try our best to meet their needs, protect the lives we build for them. They are our world and our future.

Sometimes kids learn early that the world isn’t fair. Their parents divorce, maybe they are homeless, or in foster care. The world they knew is gone, and they have to learn to adjust, Though this may lead to anger, hate, distrust, the need for therapy. They will never be the same innocent children again.

I do my best to protect my children and the lives they have. I long for them to grow up happy and healthy, loving and kind, trustful and caring.

I know at some point they will understand that the world we live in is also full of bad people, those who hate, are cruel, commit crimes, destroy lives. I want to protect them from that as long as possible. Because they are my everything. I brought them into this world hoping the best for them.

Their little faces looking at me, telling me they love me, trusting me to keep them safe. I never want to lose that.

I will protect them and the world that they know. Because I want them to CONTINUE to love and trust me unconditionally just as I will always love and trust them unconditionally.

Make sure you tell your children how much you love them. Make sure you do all you can to keep their little hearts and minds safe. Because the harsh reality of the world comes soon enough.

This last week was my son’s 6th birthday. He looked forward to this day with so much excitement! For weeks he would look at the calendar and count the days until his birthday.

Every year I hang up balloons in front of his bedroom door for his to pass through, and I always make his cake.

5th Birthday6th birthday

These are things he looks forward to. Usually I make him a cake with whipped cream frosting and fresh berries on top (nice and easy for me, delicious for everyone else!), but every few years I make a special cake. Last year he wanted a Minecraft cake, so I hit up Pinterest, got some ideas, and went to work. And it turned out pretty good

Last years Creeper Minecraft Cake

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This year was supposed to be the whipped cream berry cake again, but he is asking for a Minecraft cake again, only he wants it to be Steve from Minecraft. A few examples from Pinterest:

This is more work than I wanted this year. And with T-4 hours until his party, I don’t think any of these are going to be possible. I’m one who wants to do ANYTHING for her child. If I figured any of these were feasible right now, I would do them.

When I told him I couldn’t manage that for his cake, and how about his berry cake that he always loves instead, he agreed.

He understood and accepted, at 6 years old, that he couldn’t have exactly what he wanted, but that the alternative was acceptable and he was fine with that. He was able to adapt to the situation, without getting upset. To even be excited about it.

This is a lesson we could all benefit from. You may not get everything you want, or it may not be exactly what you want, but you have to adapt and accept to the situation.

Find the positives, adapt, and make it work. If my 6 year old can do it, so can I and so can you! Make your life what you want, be happy, and have fun. That’s all we can ask for out of life.

Now go have fun, adapt, and accept your life for what it is and what you have and be grateful! You have a life and can make it anything you want. Find the positive and make your day WONDERFUL! Now, I have a cake to finish. I may just have to add some of his Minecraft characters on top…..